In terms of ownership in Poland, "hipoteczne" has nothing to do with the owner's financial arrangements, despite it also being the word in Polish for mortgage.
It is actually one of the forms of ownership for an apartment in Poland. Other forms are
"spółdzielczo-własnościowe" or just simply"własnościowe".
I am not going to go into the different forms of ownership here as I am not 100% sure of my facts, however my understanding is that for a foreigner, a "hipoteczne" apartment is the best (only?) one to go for, as the apartment itself has its own "ksiega wieczysta" or ownership deed. This separates it from the rest of the building (and also gives it a % share of the commonly owned areas of the building and land). Other forms of ownership (mainly for older style block flats) don't specify that you actually own the apartment you are buying, but more a share of the building/land.
*Note - if the seller does have a mortgage over the property they are selling, this will be picked up by the notary who draws up the contract, as it will appear on the "ksiega wieczysta" (which they have to check). It would then be a part of the sale that the mortgage is cleared so that the new owner buys the apartment which is free of any debt.
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property-krakow.com
poland-mortgage-direct.com
krakow-apartmentz.biz